Williamson blames bowling for New Zealand defeat

New Delhi, Nov 1 - New Zealand skipper Kane Williamson rued his team's poor bowling effort for the loss to India in the opening clash of the three-match Twenty20 International (T20I) series here on Wednesday.

India dominated all departments of the game, putting together a massive total of 202/3 before restricting the visitors to 149/8.

"It was a disappointing performance tonight. We were very poor on the field. India played superbly. There are no excuses. We needed to play better. India were outstanding and never gave us a sniff," Williamson said after the match.

"The spinners bowled really well but the bowlers around them went for a lot of runs," he added.

The Kiwi captain also paid tribute to veteran Indian pacer Ashish Nehra, who played his last international match on Wednesday.

Nehra, who belongs to Delhi, bowled an economical spell of 4/29 in his four overs before being carried around the ground on the shoulders of his teammates in an emotional farewell.

"I want to congratulate Ashish on a fantastic career. I have played against him and with him, always a gentleman on and off the field," Williamson said.